6 WRITING

Writing a movie review

An effective movie review generally provides information about the movie,

summarizes the plot, and offers a recommendation based on the writer’s opinion.

A Read the questions and the movie review. Underline the answers to the
questions in the review and write the number of the question.
1. What is the title of the movie, and what genre is it?
2. What made you decide to watch the movie? What is your general impression?
3. What is the movie about?
4. Who are the main characters and actors? Who is the director?
5. Would you recommend this movie to others? Why or why not?

New Mesage
MOVIE REVIEW:

Safety Not Guaranteed

I’m a huge fan of both indie films and movies about time travel,
so choosing to watch Safety Not Guaranteed was an easy decision
1 to make and a very good one. Safety Not Guaranteed is an offbeat
romantic comedy with an original storyline, an excellent cast, and
an unexpected ending. It’s about time travel, but it’s also about
why people long to revisit the past and about why some people are
willing to believe in the impossible.
Three magazine reporters from Seattle head out on an assignment to interview a guy who placed a
classified ad looking for a partner to travel back in time with him. They think it’s a joke, but as the movie
progresses, they gradually discover that Kenneth (played by Mark Duplass), the would-be time-traveler,
actually believes he’s built a working time machine. Along the way, Darius (Aubrey Plaza), one of the
reporters, falls in love with Kenneth. Meanwhile, Jeff (Jake Johnson), another one of the reporters, does
some time-traveling of his own as he takes time off to look up an old girlfriend and teach Arnou (Karan
Soni), the third reporter, a little bit about love. In the end, it all comes together in a marvelous way.
Directed by Colin Trevorrow, the movie is charming, likable, and funny. Every line of its clever script
either makes you laugh or moves the story in a new direction. Best of all, it’s a movie so magical that it
might make you want to believe in time travel yourself. Highly recommended.

B Think of a movie you’ve seen recently, and make notes to answer the questions
in part A. Then use your notes to write a movie review.

C Pair work Exchange your movie review with a partner, and answer these questions.
1. Does your partner’s review answer all of the questions in
Useful expressions
part A? Find the answers.
Suggesting improvements
2. Is the information in the review organized effectively?
How could it be improved? It might be better if you . . .
I think what it needs is . . .
3. What else would you like to know about the movie reviewed?
You might want to . . .
Ask at least two questions.
It’d be even better if . . .
4. Would you follow the recommendation in your partner’s
review after reading it? Why or why not?

LESSON A Movies 39